TheUndeadFish

Hey everyone, Sorry about disappearing for a while. I hit a lack of interest in KSP combined with some other distractions. Coming back, I see that .22 will have a SubAssembly Loader equivalent built in. So I expect this mod to become completely obsolete. In that case, I don't plan to do any further updates to it. (Although I will at least write up some instructions on how to migrate subassembly files to wherever they need to end up in .22) However, if the official .22 subassembly feature ends up being lacking in some important or useful aspects, then I might look into revising this mod into some kind of extension of the built in functionality (if possible). So at this point I'm in "wait and see" mode until .22 comes out.

I chose that because it was easiest way for my mod to take over from the old SAL but still allow people to access any previously saved subassemblies. I didn't really want to be asking people to have to manually shuffle folders around any more than absolutely necessary. However with KSP 0.21, they're allowing mods to use proper file/directory handling features. So I'll be able to make this mod do all the file and folder management itself, which is what I've been wanting to do all along. Once I have time to work out all the programming for that, I'll be able to have it fairly seamlessly start using a new location. I've been debating either putting the new location somewhere under GameData/SubassemblyManager or under the current save-game's folder (thus making it a lot easier to backup all craft files and subassemblies at the same time). Or maybe I could provide both...

I've just updated my own game and it appears to be working normally. So far I haven't seen any new problems like that. Are you trying to load and attach a subassembly that is fundamentally unattachable (and wouldn't have worked in KSP 0.20 either)? If not, then I'll need a bit more detail as to what you're doing saving and loading parts to end up with your problem.

It's not all under GameData, although that part would at least be enough to get the mod to load and show the button. The folder/file structure is: Kerbal Space Program GameData SubassemblyManager SubassemblyManager.dll file PluginData subassemblyLoader subassemblies Landers Lifters Probes As of my latest version (v0.1.3) it now shows a disabled button (really just a dark rectangle) when there's no root part. But yes, placing a root part is a requirement for it to show a usable button. I don't have OS X so I can't test anything with that specifically. And I haven't heard anything from anyone on OS X previously, whether saying it's working or not... From what you're saying, it seems you didn't find a line starting with "AddonLoader: Instantiating addon component 'SubassemblyManager". If that's missing, then I assume it's not fully loading my mod for some reason (assuming all the same information is written to that log on OS X). So I don't have much to go on as to why it's not working. Perhaps you could try this: start the game, enter the VAB, exit out of the game, and then send me the resulting output_log file. I'm hoping there's something somewhere in there that might tell me what's going on. On a separate thought: Do you happen to be using the Part & Groups Filter mod? I've had a couple reports saying that mod causes mine to "not work", but I haven't gotten around to investigating that properly yet.

So VAB to SPH to VAB... interesting. I've taken something from the SPH to VAB, but not a full round trip like that. I'll try some experiments and see if I can get anything weird to happen.

New version released. 0.1.3 Added the ability to save over an existing subassembly without having to re-type the name. Added a warning message if the user tries to save a subassembly that probably won't be attachable (no available attachment nodes on root part). No longer allows trying to save a subassembly without a name. The save/load button appears in an inactive mode when it's not clickable, instead of being completely invisible.

I would love to enhance this. But currently KSP exposes exceedingly minimal file/directory facilities and doesn't allow me to bring in what I would need from the .NET framework. So that rather cripples my ability to do what I would want. On my to-do list. But many craft probably won't have a free attachment node on their root part and thus wouldn't be attachable as subassemblies. So it's a question of whether I can solve that problem first, or just put craft loading in before that regardless. I've taken a stab at a way to do this today... But even after flipping the necessary child-parent relationships, it's not working properly. Crawling around the minimally documented depths of KSP has not led me to a solution yet... I'm going to be working on that for my next update. Possibly tomorrow. Currently the main advantages are: - I'm allowed to distribute this one since I wrote it from scratch, whereas the old one didn't have a proper license and thus distributing any modifications to it violated the implicit copyright/intellectual-property/whatever of the original author. - I'm still here and working on it, whereas the author of the original has disappeared. - I've licensed mine so that others can continue it if I ever disappear.

You don't need the old SAL plugin. And this mod doesn't use any of those icon files. However, this does still use "Kerbal Space Program\PluginData\subassemblyLoader\subassemblies" to save and load subassemblies. (I did it that way mainly so that people can easily start using my mod while continuing to access anything they've previously saved with the old SAL.)

Currently, you can only attach a subassembly via the same part that you clicked on to detach it in the first place. This is due to the way KSP views things as a hierarchy of parts. The part you click on to detach it is the root of that subassembly and consequently the only one that can be used to reattach. If you take a whole craft and save it as a subassembly, then the root node (the command pod that you used to click and drag it) will be the root of the subassembly and consequently the only one that can be used to reattach. In that case, if you've covered up all the attachment nodes on that root, then you probably won't have any way to reattach the subassembly to another craft. These are all the same limitations that the old Subassembly Loader had. In fact, the old mod had a check that would prevent you from even trying to save a subassembly if it believed that it would not be reattachable. I haven't put in any kind of check like that, so for better or worse you can currently end up with unattachable subassemblies. I would like to find a way around these limitations eventually. But I suspect it will involve rearranging some of the part hierarchy of the subassembly on the fly, if it's possible. So that is going to take some time and experimentation.

I've just put up version 0.1.2 which should fix both of these issues.

Hmmm, I was unaware of that... Sounds like that's the cause of people's inability to load. I'll get to work on a fix. In the mean time... is there a list of portability issues and stuff like this somewhere? I would rather not be bumping into it by trial and error.

I only have a Windows computer, so that makes it harder for me to ensure it works on Linux. What exactly is going wrong for you? When you try to load one, does it not even show up in the list or does it not load once you've selected it? Could you try checking either the Alt+F2 debug log or KSP_Data/output_log.txt for errors and let me know what you find?

Ah, I think I see what's going on. I bet you're trying to save a subassembly made up of a single part. I'll have a fix for this shortly. In the mean time, multi-part subassemblies should work for you.

Hmmm. If there's a problem happening when you click the save button, then an error should hopefully show up in the Alt+F2 debug log and/or the KSP_Data/output_log.txt file. Could you check and let me know what it says?

Did you end up with those category folders under "Kerbal Space Program\PluginData\subassemblyLoader\subassemblies" or did you put them somewhere else (like under GameData)?

Yes. It's fine working side by side with the SAL. (Unless you've happened to modify SAL's button position to overlap with mine, but I doubt that.)

This is my replacement for the Subassembly Loader. It has the same kind of functionality: allowing you to save and load parts of craft. Currently it even uses the same folders that the Subassembly Loader did, so you can still work with all your previously saved subassemblies. Download Version 0.1.3 http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/subassembly-manager/ Usage In the VAB or SPH, after creating or loading a craft, there will be a button available in the upper right corner of the screen, just under the normal buttons. If you have no parts selected, then the button will read "Load Sub" and will allow you to load a previously saved subassembly. If you are currently dragging parts with the mouse, then the button will read "Save Sub" and clicking it will allow you to save those parts as a subassembly. When you detact a part from a craft and save it, that subassembly will only be attachable via the same part. When drag and entire craft and save it, that subassembly will only be attachable if the root part. If that root part doesn't have any open attachment nodes, then you probably won't be able to attach it at all. To add new categories, you have to manually go to "Kerbal Space Program\PluginData\subassemblyLoader\subassemblies" on your computer and create folders for them. (This is due to KSP limiting what a mod can do with folders.) Known Issues - Some kinds of strut or fuel line configurations might not save properly in a subassembly. - Saving an entire craft as a subassembly when its root part has no open attachment nodes (and isn't surafce-attachable) will probably result in a subassembly which cannot be attached to anything. - The category browsing will only work with one level of folders. Subfolders within those are ignored. Future Improvements I plan to make enhancements to this in the future including: - Managing categories within the game. - Deleting and renaming saved subassemblies. - Easy way to re-save an existing subassembly. - Importing a normal craft save as a subassembly. - Graphics and styling of the user interface. - A way to change a subassembly to use a different attachment point (if that's actually possible). Version History 0.1.3 Added the ability to save over an existing subassembly without having to re-type the name. Added a warning message if the user tries to save a subassembly that probably won't be attachable (no available attachment nodes on root part). No longer allows trying to save a subassembly without a name. The save/load button appears in an inactive mode when it's not clickable, instead of being completely invisible. 0.1.2 Revised category/file browser logic to not require double-clicking (thus fixing a major Linux issue). Moved Load/Save Sub button to just under the normal load/save craft buttons so that it's out of the staging area. 0.1.1 Released on the Space Port. 0.1.1-alpha Fixed an issue that prevented saving a subassembly made up of a single part. 0.1.0-alpha Initial Release License Copyright © 2013 TheUndeadFish Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions: The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software. An exception is allowed for Squad to use any part or all of this work or similar ideas and techniques in Kerbal Space Program without any restriction or conditions. THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

Here's some assorted ideas: - Making the category/subassembly list window scale larger when someone is running with a larger resolution. It's a shame when I have all this space on the screen but it uses so little. This should be rather easy, just basing some of the sizing on the current screen height or width. - Making the button have two distinct icons. One for saving and one for loading. It would switch between them on the fly depending on whether or not the user is currently dragging a subassembly. This would make it clearer which action will happen if the user clicks the button at that moment. - Since subassemblies are saved as craft files, I would guess it ought to be fairly easy to make a way to import a normal craft file into the current build. In some cases I find I would rather keep something in a normal save but also be able to attach it to another craft. Being able to do that without the extra step of going through a subassembly save would be convenient. This could possibly be presented as an Import button under the normal Open button. - Normally whenever you detach something from a vessel in the VAB, you can only ever attach it back via the same point (unless I've missed something in KSP itself). I think this has something to do with root node stuff in the detached parts. It would be wonderful if there could be a way to take the current subassembly being dragged by the mouse and change between viable nodes that it could use to attach back with. I'm guessing KSP exposes enough to accomplish this, but it might be challenging. If you want me to help collaborate on any improvements to this mod, I would be willing. Otherwise, I'm working towards some mods of my own (which have nothing to do with the functionality of this one).

You might be able to recover from a quicksave, even if you haven't used that feature. Check the quicksave.sfs file in your saved game's folder. If one is there with a date-modified from before you lost your ships, then it might have them. As far as Damned Robotics is concerned, I believe the official version is not compatible with .20+ However a patched version can be found somewhere in the thread for that mod.

I've tried looking through all the stuff that KSP exposes but I have yet to find a specific event or property that signals when the GUI should or should not be displayed. So instead in my component's Update function I call Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.F2). That will detect when the user presses the F2 button. When that happens, I toggle a bool variable of my own that is then used in my OnGUI function to control whether I run my GUI code or not. This seems to work fine, although it's in a mod I haven't released yet...

Well, Pontiac, it seems like you're already well into developing improvements for this mod. While I've had some ideas, I'm not that far along. So if you want to take over development of it, I won't object.

Unless I've overlooked something, he never included any license. And I forget what exactly that implies. (Programming I can do, but the subtleties of licensing is not my strong point.)

I was hoping the original author would show up eventually... But if not, then yes, I would be willing to take it over. However, I'm not sure of the proper way of doing that. (If there even is a "proper" way.)

I've just made a second version of my patch that moves the button to a better place for people playing the game at low resolutions. The original post has been updated with the details.

If you have the Subassembly Loader mod, it's probably causing a performance problem because KSP 0.20 is no longer loading it properly (and so the game ends up trying to reload it incessantly which you're trying to play). If that's the case, then you can either remove that mod or try out the compatibility patch I've made - http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/30696-0-20-Subassembly-Loader-0-20-Compatibility-Patch